Network Computing's Best Stories of 2012

From SDN to cloud to 802.11ac, Network Computing's reporters and bloggers brought their insight and expertise to the biggest stories of 2012. Here's a sample of some of their best work.

It's been a busy year in technology. Clouds, both public and private, continued to dominate the conversation about where and how IT can provide services to business users. The mobile invasion carried on with its relentless march into the enterprise. Microsoft released a new OS in an effort to keep Windows relevant during the long, slow decline of PC dominance. SSDs gave storage admins a new angle to argue over in the price vs. performance debate. And software-defined networking swallowed entire industries from San Francisco to San Jose.

Our bloggers and reporters covered these and other topics in great detail. Here's the best of their work from the past year, including analysis and how to's.

Software-defined networking (SDN) and OpenFlow aren't the same thing. We'll clarify the technical differences and discuss a more important distinction: SDN emphasizes applications that drive network usability and business requirements, while OpenFlow is a technology to link an SDN controller and network devices.

New technologies are emerging to streamline storage environments. Whether you call those technologies storage virtualization, storage hypervisors or software defined storage, IT still has to be persuaded to embrace them.

Network Computing provides detailed information on 12 IaaS vendors, from Amazon to Terremark. Readers can download features charts with more than 60 data points and compare details on services, SLAs, pricing and more.

IT admins can't clone themselves, but they can get darned close to being two places at once by using mobile tools. The following Android apps, several of which are free, offer handy consoles for network mapping, remote client administration, cloud management, Wi-Fi analysis and more.

Most data centers are boring boxes--but not all. Take a look at a data center that houses a supercomputer in a chapel, or an underground data center with James Bond-styling, or a solar-powered data center, and much, much more.

It's the time of the season to make a list and check it twice. We've assembled a holiday wish list for work and play, including tools to improve your mobile life, gaming gadgets, and tablet alternatives for those who already have, or don't want, an Apple in their stockings.
Drew is formerly editor of Network Computing and currently director of content and community for Interop. View Full Bio

Respondents are on a roll: 53% brought their private clouds from concept to production in less than one year, and 60% ­extend their clouds across multiple datacenters. But expertise is scarce, with 51% saying acquiring skilled employees is a roadblock.